ICT Ltd. Facilitates Regional Dialogue on ICT in Agriculture

Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) dominate the agricultural sector and make a significant contribution to the Region’s economic growth and development, food security and employment. However, they have traditionally faced many, sometimes crippling, challenges due to their restricted size and reach; they are poorly serviced, fragmented, located on less productive soils and are lacking basic production infrastructure.

At the same time however, the phenomenon of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) has been accelerating throughout the world as well as in the Caribbean. This phenomenon has opened up a world of opportunity, especially for smaller firms, to overcome some of their traditional disadvantages and so be able to compete on more of a level playing field with their larger counterparts. Small firms now have access to affordable yet powerful ICT equipment. Moreover, in many countries, virtually all individual farmers now have access to mobile phones which are recognized tools for easing trade transactions.

During the Caribbean Week of Agriculture (Oct 2012, INFOCOMM Technologies (ICT) Ltd., facilitated a Technology in Agriculture Value Chains workshop. This consultation brought together several Caribbean agricultural value chain experts representing the major sector stakeholders together with regional ICT experts toward:

 

 

•  Determining how ICT interventions impact; regional agricultural policy and value chains, sector players (public and private), technology innovation, infrastructure, market sensing and market reach;

• Developing a coherent regional strategy and policy to marry ICTs into the fabric of regional agricultural value chains;

• Prioritising and facilitating the implementation of ICT innovations;

• Strengthening CARDI’s capacity to better respond to stakeholders’ needs regarding the relationship(s) between ICTs and agriculture; as well Caribbean stakeholders needs.